Pitch changing device for musical instruments



July 7, 1953 w. E. SMITH 2,644,

- PITCH CHANGING DEVICE FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Filed Feb. 25, 1950 A u I; 45 --n 50 56 as 42 8 I. I V l -ZO 5| "TT "5? "I E /|4 .41 -,-=s| WM XM (00052 E. SM/TH;

' INVENTOR.

v mv'aeusys Patented July 7, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PITCH CHANGING DEVICE FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Walter E. Smith, Ventura, Calif.

Application February 23, 1950, Serial No. 145,806

' 12 Claims. 1

This invention relates to attachments for musi cal instruments and is particularly directed to an improved device for changing the pitch of stringed musical instruments of the lute type.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a novel device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute type musical instrument.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device for simultaneously changing the pitch of two or more strings of a lute type instrument.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute type musical instrument, which device has novel means for selectively acting upon the strings of the instrument to increase or decrease the tension of the strings.

Another object of this invention is to provide such a pitch changing device Which may be readily installed on any conventional or Hawaiian type guitar.

A further object of this invention is to pro=- vide a device of this type which is of simple and rugged construction, and which is composed of relatively few parts economical to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages it is believed will be apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments thereof when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a top plan view of a guitar showing preferred embodiment of my invention mounted operative position thereupon.

Figure 2 is an enlarged front elevation, partly in section, of a preferred embodiment of my invention.

Figure 3 is a sectional elevation taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a sectional View, similar to Figure 3, but illustrating the string engaging element in raised position.

Figure 5 is a sectional view, similar to Figure 3, illustrating the indexing sleeve in partially rotated position.

Figure 6 is a front elevation, partly in section, of a modified. form of my invention.

Figure '7 is a sectional elevation taken substantially on the line 'l'l of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a sectional elevation similar to Figure but illustrating one of the string engaging elements in raised position.

Figure 9 is a sectional elevation similar to Fig- I ure 7, but illustrating both of the string engaging elements in raised position.

Figure 10 is a perspective view of one of the string-contacting elements.

Referring to the drawings, while the attach- 2 ment embodying my invention is shown in connection with a conventional form of guitar, it is to be understood that it may be employed with other stringed instruments of the lute type.

The guitar generally designated Ill is provided with the usual sounding board H, bridge [2, central opening l3, neck l4 and neck head IS. The usual fret board [6 may be provided, at one end of which is the usual nut IT. A plurality of strings 13 extend from the tension bracket l9 over the bridge l2 and nut I1, and each of the strings I3 is connected to one of the tuning pegs 20. The usual keys 2|, having a worm and wheel connection (not shown) with the pegs 20, are provided on the neck head [5.

In accordance with my invention I provide a pitch-changing unit, generally designated 31!, which rests on the upper fiat surface 3| of the neck head l5 and lies back of and against the first pair of tuning pegs 20, as shown in Figure 1. The unit includes a base member 32 formed of a fiat strip material and having an elongated bottom section 33, end members 34 and 35 integral therewith, and a pair of inwardly-directed tab members 36 and 31 integral with the end members. The end members 34 and 35 are provided with circular openings 38 through which is inserted an indexing sleeve 40. Slight clearance is provided between the openings 38 and the sleeve 40, so that the sleeve may be rotated therein. A set screw 4| is provided on the tab 31 so that the sleeve 40 may be secured with respect to the base member 32.

A cylindrical actuating bar 42 is maintained within the sleeve, one end of the bar being bent at an angle as shown to provide a lever 43 for the manual rotation of the actuating bar with respect to the sleeve. Means are provided to prevent free rotation of the bar with respect to the sleeve, and as shown in Figure 1, this means may include a pair of longitudinal slots 44 in the end of sleeve 40. By tightening the set screw 4|, the slotted end of the sleeve may be caused to frictionally engage the adjacent periphery of the bar 42, thus permitting rotation of the bar in the sleeve only with the application of suitable force to the lever 43.

A string contacting element 45 is provided directly below the string [8a. The shape of this element is best illustrated in Figure 10, and as shown, it consists of a generally rectangular block having a string-engaging groove 46 in the top portion thereof and a pair of legs 4'! adapted to straddle the sleeve 40. A transverse slot 48 is provided in the sleeve for the reception of the string contacting element. The actuating bar 42 is provided with a cam ill which is longitudinally aligned with the slot at in the sleeve. As shown in the drawings, the cam 39 may be provided by cutting the bar transversely, leaving the bar semi-circular in cross-section at that point. A vertical groove 50, only slightly wider than the outside diameter of the sleeve, is provided in one end of the string-contacting element 55, so that the element may be maintained in proper alignment with respect to the sleeve. When the actuator bar '52 is rotated about its longitudinal axis a half turn from the position in Figure 3, the string contacting element is thereby caused to move from the position shown in Figure 3 to the position illustrated. in Figure thus increasing the tension. in the string tile.

In operation, the strings Iii are loosened, by turning the keys 2 l, sufficiently so that the unit Ell may be slipped into position with the string I 8a in the groove M3. The strings 98 are then tightened to the position shown Figure 2, so that they hold the unit ill firmly in place, and then tuned by means of the keys ill.

The actuator bar M1 is rotated to the position shown in Figure 4, and the string ills tuned to the desired pitch with the proper key ill. The bar 42 i then slowly rotated, lowering the string contacting member 45 until the tension in the string is reduced suiilciently to change the pitch the desired amount. loosened to permit the indexing sleeve is to be rotated sl ghtly to a position such as is shown in Figure 5, thus establishing the lower limit of vertical movement of the string contacting member. An aperture may be provided in the sleeve ie, so that a key (not shown) may be inserted therein to facilitate the turning of the sleeve. When the device is properly indexed, as described above, the set screw 4! is tightened, and the instrument is ready to be played. With this arrangement certain chords not otherwise available may be played on the instrument. Two predetermined tunings of the string Illa may be provided, and either may be obta ned at the will of the musician simply by moving the lever at up or down. Once the string has been tuned as described above, the pitch will remain true in either of these two positions since the unit at acts directly on the string to increase or reduce its tension a predetermined amount. Any undue wear of the string acted upon due to friction is avoided, since the string contacting element lli moves in a substantial vertical path.

A modified form of my invention, adapted to act upon two strings, is illustrated in Figures 6 to 9. The unit (it includes a base member GI substantially similar to that described above, with a pair of axially-aligned indexing sleeves 63 and 64 held therein by means of set screws 65 and 6'5, respectively. The cylindrical actuating bar 6?, provided with a lever til, extends through both sleeves E33 and M. A longitudinal slot or slots as may be provided in sleeve E4 to enable free rotational motion of the bar 5! to be restricted in the same manner as described above. A pair of string contacting elements it and H, identical with the element 45 described above, are seated in transverse slots '12 and l3 in sleeves B3 and 54, respectively.

The actuating bar El is provided with a first cam l l integral therewith which is aligned with the slot "ii; in sleeve 54. The cam i l, substantially similar to the cam 59 described above, is semicircular in cross-section. A second cam 15 is provided integral with the actuating bar 6'! and is The set screw 3! is then i aligned with the slot 72 in sleeve 63. This cam is formed by cutting transversely of the bar, leaving the bar in the cross-sectional shape of a quarter-circle at that point. By means of this arrangement, the element H alone may be caused to move upwardly, or both elements ll and 10 may be moved upwardly simultaneously as shown in Figures 7 to 9.

In operation, the unit is placed in position on the neck head 5, with the string Ifib and H30 in grooves 16 and H in the string contacting elements '10 and H, respectively. The strings 18b and 180 may then be tuned in the two positions in the same manner as described above. It will be noted that the sleeves it and G l may be rotated independently, apertures l8 and it being provided to facilitate this, in order to set the lower limits of travel of the elements ill and H.

With this arrangement, the instrument may be tuned so that any one of three tunings may be obtained merely by moving the lever to any one of three positions. Figure 7 illustrates the string contacting elements in fully lowered position. It is to be understood that in order to obtain the desired low tuning of strings liib and 80, this position may be too low and if so, the indexing sleeves 63 and 64 may be turned to establish the desired limit. A second position is shown in Figure 8, with the actuating bar rotated degrees. Here, only element H is raised, element m remaining stationary. The third position is shown in Figure 9, where the actuating bar is rotated degrees raising both elements and thu increasing the tension in both strings.

While there has been described what is at present considered preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be apparent to those skilled the art that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the essence of the invention, and it is intended to cover herein all such modifications and changes as come within the true scope and spirit of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute type instrument, a base member. a sleeve mounted on base member, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, and a string engaging element seated in slot. said clement adapted to be moved by said cam in a dir ction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar.

2. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute type instrument, a base member, a sleeve mounted on said base member, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, a string ongaging element seated in said slot, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar, and means for rotating said actuating bar.

3. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute type instrument, a base member, a sleeve adjustably mounted on said base member, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, and a string engaging element seated in said slot, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar.

4. In a device for changing the pitchv of a string of a lute type instrument, a base member, a sleeve mounted for axial rotation on said base member, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, a string engaging element seated in said slot, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar, and means for axially rotating said sleeve in a direction to limit the extent of motion of the string engaging element.

5. In a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute type instrument, a base member, a pair of sleeves mounted on said base a member, each of said sleeves being provided with a transverse slot intermediate the ends thereof, a single actuating bar extending through both of said sleeves, a pair of cams on said bar, one of said cams being aligned with each of the slots in said pair of sleeves, and a string engaging element seated in each slot, said elements adapted to be actuated by said cams in directions to change the tension in the strings upon rotation oi said actuating bar, and said cams being positioned for selective actuation of said string-engaging elements.

6. In a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute type instrument, a base member, a pair of sleeves mounted end-to-end on said base member, each of said sleeves being pro-= vided with a transverse slot intermediate the ends thereof, a single actuating bar extending through both of said sleeves, a pair of cams on said bar, one of said cams being aligned with each of the slots in said pair of sleeves, and a string engaging element seated in each slot, said elements adapted to be actuated by said cams in directions to change the tension in the strings upon rotation of said actuating bar, and said cams being positioned for selective actuation of said string-engaging elements.

'7. In a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute type instrument, a base member, a pair of sleeves adjustably mounted on said base member, each of said sleeves being provide with a transverse slot intermediate the ends thereof, a single actuating bar extending through both of said sleeves, a pair of cams on said bar, one of said cams being aligned with each of the slots in said pair of sleeves, and a string engaging element seated in each slot, said elements adapted to be actuated by said cams in directions to change the tension in the strings upon rotation of said actuating bar, and said cams being positioned for selective actuation of said string-engaging elements.

8. In a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute type instrument, a base member, a pair of sleeves mounted for independent axial rotation on said base member, each of said sleeves being provided with a transverse slot intermediate the ends thereof, a single actuating bar extending through both of said sleeves, a pair of cams on said bar, one of said cams being aligned with each of the slots in said pair of sleeves, a string engaging element seated in each slot, said elements adapted to be moved by said cams in a direction to change the tension in the strings upon rotation of said actuating bar, and

means for independently rotating said sleeves in directions to selectively limit the extent of motion of each of the string engaging elements.

9. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute-type instrument, a base member having a pair of upstanding legs each provided with an opening, an indexing sleeve mounted for axial rotation in said openings, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, a string-engaging element seated in said slot, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar, and means for axially rotating said sleeve in a direction to limit the extent of motion of the string-engaging element.

10. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute-type instrument, a base member having a pair of upstanding legs each provided with an opening, an indexing sleeve mounted for axial rotation in said openings, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, releasable means for locking the sleeve against rotation, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, a stringengaging element seated in said slot, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar, and means for axially rotating said sleeve in a direction to limit the extent of motion of the string-engaging element.

11. In a device for changing the pitch of a string of a lute-type instrument, a base member, a sleeve adjustably mounted on said base member, said sleeve being provided with a transverse slot therein intermediate the ends thereof, an actuating bar journaled in said sleeve, a cam on said bar aligned with the slot in the sleeve, and a string-engaging element seated in said slot and having a pair of legs straddling the sleeve, said element adapted to be moved by said cam in a direction to change the tension in the string upon rotation of said actuating bar.

12. In a device for changing the pitch of a pair of strings of a lute-type instrument, a base member, a pair of sleeves mounted for independent axial rotation on said base member, each of said sleeves being provided with a transverse slot intermediate the ends thereof, a single actuating bar extending through both of said sleeves, a pair of cams on said bar, one of said cams being aligned with each of the slots in said pair of sleeves, a string-engaging element seated in each slot, said elements adapted to be independently and selectively moved by said cams in directions to change the tension in the strings upon rotation of said actuating bar, and means for independently rotating said sleeves in directions to selectively limit the extent of motion of each of the string-engaging elements.

WALTER E. SMITH.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,210,015 Strandberg et al. Dec. 26, 1916 2,241,284 Walder May 6, 1941 2,323,969 Biederman July 13, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 40,858 Sweden June 21, 1916 

